ERA-CAREERS: From Charter to Practice – Strengthening Research Careers Through Capacity Building and Communities of Practice

Donor: European Union – Horizon Europe programme
Coordinator: University of Novi Sad – Faculty of Technical Sciences (Serbia)
Partners: Serbia – Faculty of Technical Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia, Minds Europe, NALED and FoodScale Hub; North Macedonia – Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, INOVA and Reactor; Montenegro – University of Montenegro and Science and Technology Park of Montenegro; Italy – University of Bologna, ART-ER and Future Food Institute; Poland – University of Information Technology and Management (UITM) and Podkarpackie Centrum Innowacji (PCI); Latvia – European Academy; Belgium – EIT Food; Cyprus – Center for Social Innovation (CSI)
Beneficiaries: Researchers, particularly early-career researchers, research career development and human resources professionals, universities and research organisations, research funding organisations, policymakers and institutions responsible for research policies.
Implementation period: September 2026 – August 2029 (36 months)
Portal: https://eracareers-project.eu/

The ERA-CAREERS project was established in response to challenges in implementing the European Charter for Researchers and European Research Area (ERA) policies. Despite the established European regulatory and strategic framework, research careers continue to be characterised by uneven working conditions, insufficiently transparent recruitment and promotion procedures, limited opportunities for professional development and mobility, and disparities between more and less developed research systems.

The project brings together universities, research institutions, research funding organisations and innovation organisations to develop practical tools, strengthen capacities and exchange good practices. Particular emphasis is placed on improving the position of early-career researchers, institutional reforms and the long-term implementation of European standards.

Objectives and results

The overall objective of the ERA-CAREERS project is to improve the conditions for developing sustainable, attractive and competitive research careers through the systematic implementation of the principles of the European Charter for Researchers, strengthening institutional capacities and connecting relevant stakeholders across the European Research Area.

The specific objectives include identifying institutional and systemic barriers to research career development; developing training and certification programmes for researchers and research support professionals; establishing a European network of communities of practice to facilitate knowledge exchange and the adoption of good practices; and formulating recommendations to improve national and European policies in the field of research careers.

The expected project results include:

• An analysis of challenges and opportunities for research career development, based on at least 200 collected experiences and eight validated matrices of challenges and opportunities;
• The establishment of a digital learning and certification platform with at least 20 educational modules and the participation of at least 600 learners;
• The establishment of a pan-European network and four thematic communities of practice, involving at least 40 institutions;
• The development and testing of at least eight practical institutional tools to improve research careers;
• The preparation of two policy briefs and the organisation of a European summit dedicated to research careers.

In the long term, the project is expected to contribute to more transparent recruitment and promotion procedures, better working conditions, greater mobility and employability for researchers, and the sustainable implementation of European standards in the academic and non-academic sectors.